Our friend Winnie is always on the lookout for a killer wine deal. And her idea of a great pour is heavier than normal, and a bit cheaper than usual. So once a month, we source a killer wine, and oblige on the pour.
A Winnie Wine Pour is an 8 oz serving of killer wine for just $6.
One day only. From the time we open, until last call or we run out, whichever comes first.
Our February selection features two lovely wines from Alla Costiera in Veneto, Italy, the Rosso Costiera and the Bianco Costiera. Both will be served from the box for a WPW first! That’s an 8 oz glass of either for just $6.
Our friends at Piedmont Wine Imports brings these to us, and here is what they have to say about the Alla Costiera experience:
“Wide canals line the road to Alla Costiera. The farm is a few kilometers from Vo Vecchio, a hamlet that always reminds me of streets from Venice lifted up and deposited in the middle of Vialone Nano rice territory. For a short distance, the Veneto looks like the Netherlands, before reverting to rocky, volcanic, very Italian pre-alpine topography.
Filippo Gamba is a sturdy individual. Bald, wide, tan like a person accustomed to daily labor outside. He took over his family's six hectares of hilly vineyard in 2000, and immediately converted the property to organic agriculture. Healthy low impact farming and minimalist winemaking are core tenets of Alla Costiera's philosophy.
Arriving at the cellar, one is greeted by cute little dogs. Old, ornery, vocal, adorable. Filippo's wife Elisa works on the property too, and does much of the administrative labor. The cellar is small, a collection of five and 10 hectoliter enameled concrete tanks and fermentation vessels. There isn't much wood in the place. A tour doesn't take long. Even though Filippo added a tasting room and event space adjacent to the main office and cellar, there's more to see in the countryside. The winery is a functional and compact farm building of the type that has dotted the Veneto landscape for generations.
It's worth taking a walking tour of the property to hear Gamba explain the geologic diversity of his land. Scant hectares span trachite rocky soil, marine calcareous deposits from the Veneto's underwater epoch, and volcanic basalt. Gamba's wines are quite diverse in flavor profile. The land explains their distinctions.
Better than rock talk is dinner at the small traditional pasta place tucked among the hills of Filippo's neighborhood. You'll weep for the silky delicate fresh long noodles and elegant filled pastas of this normal regional gem. You'll swear off American pasta, pull your hair out in grief. It's better to give in. Let yourself be overwhelmed by the pastoral beauty of this unheralded corner of northeastern Italy. It's kinda close to Padua. I don't think tourists come by.
A plate of perfect pasta, an array of Filippo's wines, surrounded by agrarian serenity. There is no better lunch. Come for the Prosecco, stay for everything else contained in the small universe of Alla Costiera.”
This Wednesday evening, we will host Lucian’s Flame, a Neapolitan-style pizza truck. So not pasta, but maybe the next best thing? Swing by won’t you…
